88. Public Speaking Advanced: 10. How? Introduction
Last week we looked at transitions, stringing the points together.
Now is the time we go back to the beginning. How do we want to introduce the speech to everyone.
How does the average person start a speech/presentation?
It usually goes something like this:
Good morning everyone. My name is X. Today I'll be telling you about….
Sounds familiar? Are you excited to hear what he has to say?
I will try to listen if I have to, but I'm afraid I may get easily distracted if something more interesting comes along, like my mobile phone, etc
The first few moments of any speech / presentation is crucial in capturing the attention of the audience. You have those few moments to help them decide that you are more interesting and worth their time then any other distraction available to them at that time.
What should / could you do to achieve that?
Here are some tips that may help:
Memorise your intro. Never read from a note or script.
Get the attention of the audience. Tell a story, give an illustration.
Be comfortable and calm, the audience can tell.
Involve the audience, ask a question, then ask for a show of hands as response to your question.
Give a quote (must be relevant to the topic, impacts your message and better if from a person that the audience is likely to recognise)
Make a strong statement of fact that sounds amazing or outrageous. Pause a little for the impact to sink in, then share the details.
Don’t rush through the intro.
Example intro for: Benefits of Sleeping Early
"70% of road accidents and 85% of fatalities of those accidents are due to driver inattentiveness from lack of sleep!"
